St. Luke Ev. Lutheran Church of Watertown
Sermon delivered by Pastor Anthony E. Schultz
2nd Last Sunday of End Times/Last Judgment
November 12, 2006 Hebrews 11:32


And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets…


People of God—rescued from the flaming lake of fire in hell by the innocent blood of the very Lamb of God:

This Saturday, November 11th is Veterans Day. This is not technically a Church Day. And yet—with our nation at war—with young men from our congregation at war—and with so many of our members having served in the military—I think it’s ok this once—to study God’s Word—with special application to our nation. This Thursday morning—they had a special devotion at our Wisconsin Lutheran High School and Friday at our Lakeside Lutheran High School—to ask for God’s mercy especially on our Veterans and those serving their Savior and their nation in harm’s way. When you are little—living in these United States—what do you know about war? By the grace of God—I would say—not too much. If you were a child growing up in almost a third of all the countries in the world—there are landmines! There are landmines—intended to harm enemy soldiers. If you step on them—step too near them—touch them they explode. Some are even designed to fly up several feet before exploding—causing all sorts of pieces of metal to do terrible harm to the human body. There are anti-tank landmines. They are set to explode when something about as heavy as a tank rolls over them. The problem is—an anti-tank landmine can’t tell the difference between a tank and a tractor! Then there is danger from things that don’t explode when they are first shot—like bullets or hand grenades—mortars or artillery shells or bombs. They hit the ground and just sit there. The next thing you know—a little child touches them or steps on them—or comes too near them—and now they explode. And little bodies are broken! It is only by the grace of God—that our land—our soil—our fields and lawns and gardens don’t have these explosives everywhere!

When you are little—growing up in these United States—what do you know about war? By the grace of God—I would say—not too much! Children growing up in the places where the little Lord Jesus grew up—know about war. They know what a Katyusha Rocket is. Do you? Katyusha Rockets were invented by the Russians during WW II. They are a whole bunch of rockets mounted on a truck. You can drive them to the front—shoot them all—then drive your truck away again—all very quickly and very cheaply. Katyusha Rockets were fired from Lebanon—the place where the lumber came from to build Solomon’s Temple. These rockets—are not very accurate. That means when you shoot them—you don’t know for a fact where they will land. Maybe they will hit enemy soldiers—wearing the uniform of the enemy. Maybe they will hit hospitals or schools or homes where little grandmas and grandpas live! That’s war. That’s what they call collateral damage! Collateral damage sounds like you blew a hole in some highway. Collateral damage sounds like you did damage to a shed or garage—damage to office equipment or flower beds. Collateral damage means you killed innocent civilians and their cows and sheep and goats—who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time!

Learn From Heroes Of Faith

1. Repent of your sins
2. Trust in the LORD’s strength

God’s Word says, And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets… Do you remember Gideon? He was the soldier the LORD chose to do battle with the physical military enemy of the children of Israel. God’s Word says, “Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD, and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites.” Judges 6:1 It was so bad—God’s people made shelters for themselves in mountain clefts, caves and strongholds. God’s people planted their crops and the Midianites and Amalekites and other people invaded. They ruined the crops—not just took a lot—but ruined the crops—and did not spare a living thing for Israel—neither sheep nor cattle nor donkeys. The enemy swarmed over Israel like swarms of locusts. It was impossible to count the men and their camels; they invaded the land to ravage it. Midian so impoverished the Israelites that they cried out to the LORD for help. The Midianites used camel cavalry—to pillage and plunder. The LORD had mercy on his people—and used Gideon to deliver them. You know how that worked out—how the LORD pared down Gideon’s army until it was smaller and smaller—still not small enough until it was only 300 men. That way the LORD made sure—when they won the victory they would have to know it was the LORD who won the victory—not their own courage or strength! It is kind of sad—the battle cry that Gideon ordered—for the LORD and for Gideon! What a powerful temptation still—to think I won the battle—because I am the bravest—the strongest—the best prepared and the best equipped. We need to remember what Gideon seemed to have forgotten—the battle belongs to the LORD. When evil rolls in like a flood he’s raised up a standard the power of his blood. The battle belongs to the LORD! The LORD didn’t need Gideon. Gideon needed the LORD. The sword of the LORD—that’s it!

I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak… Do you know Barak? Barak, too was a judge—a leader of God’s people. He lived in a time when God’s people were oppressed for some 20 years. Imagine that! The LORD sold the children of Israel into service to Jabin—the King of the Canaanite. Sisera the commander of the Canaanite army had 900 iron chariots. That’s like having 900 tanks. Finally the oppression of the Canaanites was so horrible the people couldn’t stand it and they cried out to the LORD for deliverance. The men—men like Barak had faith and courage—but not enough. Barak went by Deborah—and said to her—“If you will go with me, I will go; but if you don’t go with me, I won’t go.” We know this is wrong because God’s Word says—“Very well,” Deborah said, “I will go with you. But because of the way you are going about this, the honor will not be yours, for the LORD will hand Sisera over to a woman.” That’s what the LORD promised. And that’s what the LORD did. He handed the fierce and feared commander of the enemy into the hands of a lady armed only with some warm milk, a hammer and a tent stake! Again—the battle belongs to the LORD!

During the 1970s there was a very difficult war—half way around the world in rice paddies and in thick jungles. There were prisoners of war that were held in tiger cages—made of bamboo so small they were all cramped. When you aren’t given enough water—when you sweat and can’t move—you get horrible muscle cramps. It is difficult to imagine how painful and inhumane that was. Add to that—the fact that when our soldiers and sailors and marines came home from that very difficult war—often times they were spit upon. Again—it’s just about impossible—to imagine how humiliating it is to be spit upon. Jesus endured all this and more. Jesus’ muscles were racked with pain as he suffered on the cross. Jesus was spit upon again and again—mocked and ridiculed by those who carried out his crucifixion. Jesus was spit upon by the very people he was dying to forgive. How great is the love the Father lavished on us that we should be called children of God—for Jesus’ sake.


And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson… Just about everyone knows who Samson is. Samson had other girlfriends—before he met the deadly Delilah. Samson had all kinds of painful encounters with Philistines—before he became entangled with the spiritually dangerous Delilah. Samson made a terrible beginning—but a good ending of his life. Samson understood there are things worth dying for—like your Heavenly Father—your nation and your family. Samson willingly gave up his life—and in the end took more of his enemies with him—than all the enemies he killed during his life. Again the battle belongs to the LORD. The LORD used mighty Samson in the end—to crush his enemies—and set his people free. Jesus—the ultimate hero of faith—gave up his life to pay for all our sins and mistakes.

And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah… Do you know who Jephthah was? God’s Word says Jephthah…was a mighty warrior. The Hebrew words for mighty warrior are used to describe men who possessed the character and military means—the weapons, support and training to accomplish mighty things for the glory of the LORD! Jephthah’s mom was a lady who sold “hugs and kisses”! Jephthah’s half brothers knew where he came from—and they wanted nothing to do with him. They sure as the world—didn’t want to divide their inheritance with a man like him—so they drove him away. Jephthah went to a place called Tob—a place literally hard from volcanic rock—by Bashan and Gilead. In Tob Jephthah picked up—literally gleaned—like picking up missed and dropped clumps of grain—Jephthah picked up a bunch of adventurers—literally “empty men”. Do you appreciate that word picture? Empty people—people who had nothing—and therefore nothing to lose? For 18 years the Ammonites oppressed God’s people. Imagine how painful that would be—for 18 years—to have an enemy invade our land—invade our fields and farms and cities—to rape and pillage and plunder. To commit acts of terrorism—right here—on our streets—our schools—our businesses—our homes! Jephthah tried diplomacy—tried talking. But when that failed—the LORD—the Great I AM—the Holy One of Israel—sent Jephthah into battle. Just before that battle—Jephthah made a very foolish promise—a promise concerning something he couldn’t be sure of. Jephthah made a vow to the LORD: “If you give the Ammonites into my hands, “Whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the LORD’s, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering.” Judges 11:30,31 By grace alone—the LORD was with Jephthah and his army and blessed him. By grace alone—the LORD crushed their enemies. By grace alone 20 cities were crushed—hammered—pounded by the LORD! How the people rejoiced that the LORD had given such a powerful victory to his people! When Jephthah returned to him home in Mizpah, who should come out to meet him but his daughter, dancing to the sound of tambourines! She was an only child. Except for her he had neither son nor daughter. When he saw her, he tore his clothes and cried, “Oh! My daughter! You have made me miserable and wretched, because I have made a vow to the LORD that I cannot break.” Happiness—and sadness when he returned home from war. Do you know what that feels like? There is happiness because you have defeated your enemy and won the war. And yet—here was sadness—too—because he had made such a foolish promise!

Sometimes there is pain and sadness—even today—when soldiers come home from war. That’s because there is sin in this world! Sometimes the sadness is physical. My one uncle who fought in World War II—had shrapnel in his arms. I can remember as a child—watching him rub his arms—because they hurt. He said they always hurt—especially when the weather changed. Sometimes small pieces of metal would work their way to his skin—and he could pull them out. Those pieces of metal were so small you couldn’t operate to take them out. It was a terrible kind of wound. It’s kind of like sins. We do so many. We do them all the time. We sin—even sitting in church—our mind wandering to sinful hurtful angry even lustful thoughts. Sometimes soldiers come home with sadness—with fatigue from fighting so long and so hard—seeing things so painful to see—the wounds are in their heart and in their mind and emotions. I had another uncle who was at Normandy on D-Day. That was such an unspeakably horrible day—that many of those who were there—were wounded in their hearts and in their emotions—to the point that they never really healed. All it would take is a terribly loud noise—and soldiers who had stormed the beach—took out enemy machineguns and captured enemy soldiers and gave first aid to wounded soldiers. And through all this fighting—tooth and nail—fighting to stay alive—there are wounds so deep inside it is almost impossible to treat them. Soldiers have come home from the war in Korea. Oh, people watch M*A*S*H and sometimes think it wasn’t so bad. That people did operations to save the wounded—and told one joke after another. Soldiers came home from Vietnam—to protests and bitterness. Soldiers were accused of all kinds of unspeakable evil. Soldiers came home from The 1st Gulf War and from the war in Iraq—missing arms and legs—horribly burned and painfully wounded—sometimes to be accused of being terrorists—rapists and worse. It is only by the grace of God—that our country is blessed with men and women who wear the uniform of our nation. By the grace of God—they serve their Savior and their country—willing to die for their country. It is fitting that we should learn from the example of heroes of faith in God’s Word—Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah to repent of our sins and to trust in the LORD to defeat our ultimate enemies—sin and the devil—to know eternal victory in heaven. Amen!

To God alone all glory!
Rev. Anthony E. Schultz